Announcements

The Texas Bar Foundation has awarded a $5,000 grant to the Houston Bar Foundation for its Veterans Legal Initiative (VLI), a program that provides pro bono legal services to veterans in 17 Texas counties. The grant will be used to increase awareness of the services provided by the VLI through mailings to veterans and veteran...

Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman and New York State Bar Association President Seymour W. James, Jr. have announced the expansion of Charity Corps, a joint initiative between the New York State Attorney General's Office and the New York State Bar Association to improve nonprofit governance and legal compliance. Charity Corps matches...

Friday’s horrible tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut, is just the latest in a series of mass shootings in a country that makes it too easy to buy guns, carry guns and use guns. Federal law and most state laws allow the purchase and amassing of semiautomatic weapons with the most meager of limitations, and some state laws encourage the carrying...

The letter, drafted by the City Bar’s Committee on International Human Rights, cites President Morsi’s declaration granting his decrees and laws immunity from judicial review until a new constitution has been ratified and a new parliament elected. The declaration also replaced Egypt’s public prosecutor and prevents the judiciary...

To aid members of the community left devastated in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, the New York County Lawyers’ Association (NYCLA) is providing assistance to lawyers and members of the greater community through a variety of efforts to help hurricane victims get back on their feet immediately and in the long‐term.
Hurricane Relief Drive
NYCLA's...

JAMS, the largest private provider of mediation and arbitration services worldwide, is proud to announce it was named Best ADR Provider in Dallas and Austin and placed second in Houston in the third annual Texas Lawyer “Best of” Survey.
“Texas is one of our most important and valued markets,”...

The Intellectual Property Committee of the Dade County Bar Association proudly invites you to participate in The Third Annual Patently Impossible Project to benefit the Legal Aid Society on Thursday, November 1, 2012 from 6pm to 8pm at the Miami Science Museum.
Now in its third year, The Patently Impossible Project is a charity race...

Large numbers of Americans doubt the fairness of civil courts and a majority – sometimes substantial majorities -- admit that personal biases could affect their decisions as jurors. These are some of the surprising and unsettling results of a new national poll on the civil justice system by DRI – The Voice of the Defense Bar. The poll...

As the United States Supreme Court begins its new term, the New York City Bar Association has recommended that its Justices be required to issue written explanations for their decisions either to recuse from a case or to hear a case in the face of a motion to disqualify. “The adoption of this practice, whether by the Court’...

Tom Sager – what an honor to receive this award from a stalwart leader, activist, and committed brother in the law who has, through your sheer force of gentlemanly presence, made it possible for lawyers of color and women to advance within our legal profession.
I want to thank your president and CEO, Joe West, and his right arm,...

A State Bar Association initiative to improve diversity within the organization and the legal profession was recognized by the American Bar Association during its recent annual meeting in Chicago.
The ABA awarded its prestigious ABA Partnership Award to the State Bar's President's Diversity Challenge. In 2011, then-President Vincent E....

A whistleblower who helped the Securities and Exchange Commission stop a multi-million dollar fraud will receive nearly $50,000 -- the first payout from a new SEC program to reward people who provide evidence of securities fraud.
The award represents 30 percent of the amount collected in an SEC enforcement action against the perpetrators of the...

At the annual meeting of the American Bar Association in August, judge William C. Carpenter, Jr. of the Superior Court of Delaware was elected chair of the National Conference of State Trial Judges (NCSTJ). The NCSTJ is the oldest and largest organization of general jurisdiction state trial judges in the nation. It acts as an advocate for...

On Wednesday, September 12, the New York County Lawyers’ Association (NYCLA) held its 22nd Annual Public Service Awards Reception. Chaired by former NYCLA President Catherine A. Christian and held at the Home of Law, 14 Vesey Street, the
Awards Reception honored public sector attorneys and featured special remarks by Preet Bharara, United...

Many public school districts in Texas are facing a growing number of legal issues, often complicated by fewer financial resources to actively address and prevent litigation and other challenges. The Highland Park Independent School District is working with the law firm of Thompson & Knight LLP to educate the District’s leadership on how...

The Center for U.S. and Mexican Law at the University of Houston Law Center is embarking on a binational research project to explore the domestic and international laws that govern development of shared oil and gas fields in the Gulf of Mexico. The goal is to identify potential areas of regulatory conflict that could endanger the environment of...

This summer, nearly 1000 attendees gathered to watch New York City's Mayor, Michael Bloomberg, swear in the slate of new officers and directors of the National Association of Women Lawyers® (NAWL) at the Awards Luncheon ceremony in the Grand Ballroom of the Waldorf Astoria during the association's 2012 Annual Meeting and Awards...

DRI, The Voice of the Defense Bar, has been named one of seven of the Best LinkedIn Groups for Attorneys and Legal Professionals by The Court Technology and Trial Presentation Blawg. The blog is published by Ted Brooks, a well-respected trial presentation and legal technology consultant, author and speaker who has consulted successfully on...

The state of cross-border legal services and education between the United States and its southern neighbor is the subject of the first research project of the new Center for U.S. and Mexican Law at the University of Houston Law Center.
In the past twenty years, there has been a dramatic increase in the movement of people, goods and services...

The United States Patent and Trademark Office announced July 2, 2012, that it will be opening three additional regional offices: Denver, CO, Dallas, TX and San Jose, CA (Silicon Valley) join the previously announced Detroit, Michigan office (opening July 13, 2012).
These regional offices will help the USPTO further implement the...

The Society of Corporate Secretaries and Governance Professionals elected Kenneth L. Wagner of Peabody Energy Corporation as Society chairman for the 2012-13 year. Mr. Wagner was elected at the Society's annual meeting, which took place at its 66th National Conference in Washington DC.
Mr. Wagner is vice president, assistant general counsel...

The Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC), the premier global bar association serving the interests of in-house counsel, today announced the founding of its 54th chapter, the ACC Kentucky Chapter.
The new chapter will serve corporate counsel members in the cities of Louisville, Lexington and its surrounding areas. It will also provide a vast...

Heraeus Incorporated announced today that Kim R. Jessum and Austin K. So have joined the company as associate general counsels.
With over 15 years of experience, Ms. Jessum will concentrate her practice on patent and other intellectual property matters. Previously, Ms. Jessum was of counsel at Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young, LLP...

Gibbons P.C. was honored with the Pride of Essex County Award at the second annual Essex County LGBTQ Pride Month Celebration on June 19, 2012, hosted in conjunction with Essex County Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning Advisory Board.
The firm’s John J. Gibbons Fellowship in Public Interest & Constitutional Law earned...